


When you say nothing at all

by cinderella1147



Category: NCIS
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-25
Updated: 2019-07-25
Packaged: 2020-07-19 21:10:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19980547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cinderella1147/pseuds/cinderella1147
Summary: Post- S16E10 “What child is this?”. The morning after they deliver the baby to his new parents, Ellie can't exactly let this go, so she calls the parents, hoping for a quick visit to say properly goodbye to the little guy. It was supposed to be a one-time thing. Life had different ideas. Ellick.





	When you say nothing at all

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly, I wish I had the time/patience to write this as a multi-chapter fic and flesh out some of the elements of this story. But I didn't, so hopefully you'll still find this a fun read. It also didn't exactly go where I thought it would, but what can I say: I just started writing it and it kinda ran away from me. 
> 
> note1: story starts off right after "What child is this?", but then jumps to the following summer - so technically the summer following the S16 season finale. However, it doesn't deal with any other episodes. You can assume the rest of the season happened as is, but that whatever danger loomed over Gibbs at the very end, it has been resolved with a happy ending. :)
> 
> note2: English is not my native language, feel free to let me know if I made grammatical, etc. mistakes. Please and thank you.

Ellie stared at the screen of her phone, her finger hovering over the “call” button. After last night’s excitement of handing over the baby to his parents, the adrenaline- and maybe a little sadness- was still working through her when she got home. She ended up watching a compilation of christmas-themed Friends re-runs until well after midnight, then slept in, taking advantage of the holiday and the fact that her flight to Oklahoma wasn’t leaving until the afternoon. She’d been puttering about in the kitchen lazily, making coffee, staring out the window, and enjoying the quiet morning when an idea popped into her head. A strange idea, and one that Gibbs, for instance, would surely not approve. Yet, here she was, holding her phone, trying to come to a decision. 

Eventually, she took a deep breath and pressed to call.  
“Hello, this is Judy Shaw speaking.” The woman’s voice was upbeat and cheerful, and Ellie suspected that it was completely sincere.  
“Hi Judy, this is Ellie Bishop, Agent Bishop, we met last night...” she answered, a hint of uncertainty still in her tone.  
“Of course! Hi… I’m so glad you called! I actually wanted to get in touch with you, too. But wait, is everything ok?”  
“Yes, definitely. This is a personal call, I hope you don’t mind, Ms. Miles from the Adoption Agency gave me your number.” Ellie laughed a little in embarrassment. Now that she was saying these things out loud, she wasn’t sure if this was a good idea anymore. “I know this is strange, I hope you don’t think I’m a crazy person…Would it be completely out of line if dropped by sometime for a quick visit?” She blurted out finally. Judy’s response was quick and firm.  
“Not at all! Please come by any time. Actually, this is why I wanted to call you: in all the excitement we just didn’t have a chance to thank you and your partner properly for taking care of our baby and for bringing him back to us. I was going to invite you over to have dinner with us.”  
Her hopeful tone left little doubt that her invitation was genuine and Ellie felt a tug on her heart as she thought about seeing the baby she had grown so fond of. Without thinking it through, she heard herself agree. They settled on the first weekend of the new year, and that was how it all began.

She visited the Shaws’ during that freezing weekend in January, and at first she thought that would be the end of it. Except, February rolled around, and it was Judy’s birthday (which Ellie of course remembered because it was mentioned somewhere in the adoption files), so when she texted her to wish her a happy birthday, Judy invited her over again. As time went by, every couple of weeks, she found herself on the floor of the Shaws’ living room, playing with little David Montgomery Shaw, and chatting with his parents. Nowadays, when all her life seemed to revolve around NCIS - and most of her thoughts around a certain someone at NCIS- it was nice to make friends who had nothing to do with any federal agency. 

Ellie never mentioned these visits at work. Neither Gibbs nor Jack would approve, she was sure of it, and she could already hear the teasing and the questions she would get from Tim and Nick. Especially Nick. Frankly, she wasn’t ready to face questions about ticking biological clocks, her recent near death experience, or why she got so attached to a baby in less than 48 hours. On top of all that, she desperately needed to figure out how to handle her growing crush on her fellow team member...

All in all, she thought it was better that she didn’t let NCIS in on either of these developments in her personal life. It’s not like she was doing anything illegal or wrong by being friends with Judy and Pete. ‘Maybe it was a little odd, but a little odd never hurt anyone,’ she rationalized it on her way to see that almost one year-old cutie and her new friends. She locked her car at the curb, and pulled out her phone to check it one more time while she was walking to the house. 

Head tilted down, she was reading an email from Ducky when the door opened and she bumped into a muscled torso as someone tried to leave. She noticed the soft touch of the well-worn cotton t-shirt, and the familiar scent of an aftershave right before her confused expression landed on the equally baffled but always handsome face of Nick Torres. 

“Bishop?” his shocked question hung in the air and she kept staring. Oh boy, he really was unrealistically handsome. _Damn, Bishop, focus._ Ellie mentally and physically shook her head to clear it and finally found her voice.

“Torres? What are you doing here?”  
“Me? What are *you* doing here?”

Someone cleared their throat behind Nick and they both turned to look. Judy stood there, with Davie resting on her chest, and an amused expression on her face. 

“Are you telling me you had no idea that both of you have been hanging out here for months?”  
Nick looked at Ellie then back at Judy in complete confusion. “Yeah…?”  
“Wha-Judy, what do you mean exactly?” Ellie found it difficult to follow the turn of events.  
“So, it seems both of you have been coming to visit Davie and I didn’t realize that you two didn’t know about the other’s visits until just now… Wow...Why don’t you both come inside and I’ll explain?”

Indicating the living room with her free hand, Judy turned around and left the entryway, while Ellie and Nick were left standing on the threshold of the front door. Confusion still etched on her face, Ellie stepped inside and watched as Nick closed the door. When their eyes met again, she tried to verbalize her questions. _Tried._

“How long have you…I mean...how…and why...”  
“Sentences, Bishop. Try full sentences,” he added with an amused tone.  
“Don’t sass me, Torres. You’re just as surprised as I am.”  
“That’s true. But when I think about it, it all makes perfect sense. You and your big heart- of course you would get a bit attached.” His teasing turned soft and sincere when he added, “Nothing wrong with that. Actually, I would be more surprised if you didn’t.” The unexpected compliment left Ellie without a quick reply as they entered the living room.

“I think there’s a relatively simple explanation to this, and I’m afraid it’s all my fault,” Judy started. “When we first met, the night you brought Davie home to us, I was convinced you were a couple - so when Ellie called and we made plans for dinner, I just assumed you two talked about it and Nick didn’t want to come for some reason. Then Nick called a few days later and started coming over alone, and I kinda thought maybe you broke up or something. I didn’t want to be rude and ask about something that was probably sensitive. You were both so sweet, and we really liked getting to know you and spending time together, and didn’t want to mess that up by mentioning the fact that your “ex” was also hanging out here occasionally. Honestly, we never intentionally made sure that your paths didn’t cross...But the fact that you met today was pure coincidence. And I for one, really hope you don’t mind and there won’t be a conflict because of this...”

Ellie kept looking between Judy, Pete, and Nick, stunned and amazed. She flushed at the idea that yet again, she and Nick were assumed to be a couple, and she may have detected a slight blush on the face of her partner as well. 

“It’s okay, Judy,” said Nick after another moment of silence. “Don’t worry about it. No harm done. It was just a misunderstanding, and there’s no conflict at all. Honest.” He sounded reassuring, but inside was desperately trying to figure out how this would affect his relationship with Ellie. After all, neither of them confided the other...Do they have trust issues that he somehow didn’t notice before? That would turn his world upside down, to be honest. It’s one thing that he was absolutely captivated by Eleanor Bishop, and had no idea how to go about convincing her to give *them* a shot...But if they also have to start from square 1 and figure out how to trust each other, that’s a completely different board game. 

His existential crisis was postponed by Pete, who ushered the group to the dining area and insisted that both Nick and Ellie had dinner with them. To no one’s surprise, the four adults had a really nice time over dinner. It didn’t escape Nick’s attention that there was still an ease and comfort to their relationship that was the result of a million and one hours they’ve worked together and the friendship they built along the way. Suddenly, he understood that none of it would be possible if they didn’t trust each other. He stole glances at her throughout dinner, and made a mental note to tell her later that as far as he was concerned, they were all good. They probably both had their reasons to keep these visits to themselves, but above everything, they were rock solid and that’s all that mattered. 

By the time they said their goodbyes, Ellie completely forgot the _surprise du jour_. Nick had an uncanny ability to distract her. In a good way. But now that they were walking toward their cars her heart felt heavy at the realization that their night was about to end. She didn’t want to go home to an empty apartment, but more than that, she wanted to spend more time with Nick. It was past 11, the street was dark, but the summer air was warm and still heavy with the scent of the neighborhood flowers. She took a deep breath and tried to focus on how good this night was already, and the effortless understanding that seemed to settle between them.

“So,...” she started, then didn’t continue.  
“So, yeah…” he added, and didn’t elaborate further either.  
They just reached Ellie’s car around the same time when she made the decision to put all her cards on the table. Well, most of them, anyway.

“I know a cute coffee-shop that’s open late and it’s on the way back to the city. Want to stop there? We should talk. I mean, I’d like it if we talked. If you feel up to it. You don’t have to, I know it’s late, I understand if you’d rather just go home, or maybe you have plans, that’s cool, too.” So much for laying cards on the table. This was, at best, her dropping a pack of cards on the floor. How is it that her relatively developed social skills fly out the fuckin’ window when it comes to this man? _‘Also, Bishop, his mouth is moving, clearly he is saying something, most of which you are missing due to this internal monologue where you berate yourself. FOCUS.’_

“....coffee would be great. You lead the way, I follow?”  
Catching just enough to know what to do, she smiled and nodded. “I’ll send you the address, just in case.”

Twenty minutes later, Nick parked next to Ellie’s car at a Gibbs’ style diner. At least that was his first impression of the place and he was running with that analogy now. The 50s style decor would certainly suit their boss, but he was more than happy that he was here with Ellie and not the ex-Marine. 

They have barely settled in a booth when two steaming cups of coffee appeared on the table. Naturally, Ellie couldn’t pass the opportunity to eat, so she ordered a piece of pie as well, while Nick was (again) left wondering where the hell she put all that food. 

“My brother, George, used to say that all the food went to my brain.” A twinkle in her eye signaled that there was more to that comment, but he was distracted by the fact that she read his mind?

“You read minds now, Bishop? Should I be concerned? Trust me, you may not want to read every thought I have.” The suggestion on what kind of thoughts might be there was clear even without the barely suppressed smirk that appeared on his lips. 

Raising a single eyebrow at this, Ellie chuckled. “Concerned? No. Cautious, perhaps. That said, what if I do? What if I’d want to read every thought you have…” The “about me” that she didn’t specify might as well be carved into the table, it sat so heavy in the air. 

Nick’s face turned more serious. He waited until she placed back her mug on the table after taking a sip, then with the barest touch he reached for her hand and traced an invisible line between her wrist and her knuckles. 

“I’m an open book, Ellie” he said softly. Raising his eyes from their hands to her eyes, she was reminded why she trusted this man with her life. Never once had he lied to her, and now, his expression so clear and piercing, he was in fact an open book. Ellie hoped that her eyes conveyed as much to him as she learned just by looking in his. When his hand moved from bare caress to firmly link their fingers together, she smiled in response and he smiled back. 

The scent of the freshly brewed, warm coffee from their mugs reached her nose just then and she knew that from now on she would always associate the smell of coffee with how Nick was looking at her. Might even develop some unhealthy habits as a result, because the warmth that spread in her chest was more than addictive. She felt her pulse quicken, and like her heart might burst.

When the waiter unceremoniously placed the slice of pie in the middle of the table, Nick pushed the plate closer to her. “Well, glad we had this talk,” he grinned. “Now dig in, I’d rather finish this conversation elsewhere.”

“Really? How come?” came the cheeky response.

“Let’s just say you’re not the only one who can read minds.” Eyes dancing with confidence and mirth, he gently tugged on her hand to pull her closer, while he leaned over the table. Gently cupping her head with his free hand, he pulled her in for a kiss that was meant to be a quick peck, but lasted for a few more heartbeats once she realized what was happening and started responding. 

When he sat back to his seat, Nick couldn’t help but smile at her slightly dazed expression. Eventually, Ellie looked down at the pie, then back up at him again. “Maybe we should take this to go.”


End file.
